Where Only Storms Grow: Chapters 31–46

by Alyssa Colman
The Stanton twins, Howe and Joanna, live in the Oklahoma panhandle during the devastating 1930s Dust Bowl event. In the midst of unprecedented and unrelenting dust storms, Joanna and Howe must work together to save their family farm and the whole community.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Chapters 1–2, Chapters 3–8, Chapters 9–12, Chapters 13–30, Chapters 31–46
15 words 6 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. pallet
    a mattress filled with straw or a pad made of quilts
    The dust storms picked up that week, and every day there were more and more patients in the hospital. Soon there were pallets on the floor because we ran out of beds.
  2. wistfully
    in a pensively sad manner
    “If I ever have kids, I hope they care about me as much as you three love your mama.” She looked wistfully at the ceiling. “She’s going to be fine, don’t you know. Love cures all ills.”
  3. vulnerability
    susceptibility to injury or attack
    “Of course not! I love your poems, Howe.”
    I expected a barb or a joke. Instead his eyes met mine and the vulnerability there just about slayed me.
  4. lucid
    having a clear mind
    Now that she was lucid, I discovered that my mama was an extremely challenging patient.
  5. meager
    deficient in amount or quality or extent
    It was a meager but much appreciated feast.
  6. tersely
    in a short and concise manner
    She nodded tersely. “Let’s go.”
  7. cistern
    an artificial reservoir for storing liquids
    “It’s going to be all right, Jo. I’m gonna get some water.” My legs wobbled as I hurried to the cistern.
  8. doting
    extravagantly or foolishly loving and indulgent
    The horse burst out, nostrils widening. I froze, worried we’d returned to our old ways and she was going to attack me. Instead the soft velvet of her muddy muzzle tickled as she snuffled me over like a doting mother.
  9. foreboding
    an unfavorable omen
    With a sense of foreboding, I turned my inspection toward the house.
  10. vertigo
    a reeling sensation; a feeling that you are about to fall
    My vision swam in a fit of vertigo. The ground, which should have been a story or so below, was now maybe eighteen inches beneath the loft window.
  11. harrowing
    causing extreme distress
    Someday we would tell our harrowing tale.
  12. proposal
    something suggested, as a plan or assumption
    Grant rubbed his chin. “It’s an interesting proposal, Howe. Give me some time to mull on it and talk to my counterparts in Washington—”
  13. mull
    reflect deeply on a subject
    Grant rubbed his chin. “It’s an interesting proposal, Howe. Give me some time to mull on it and talk to my counterparts in Washington—”
  14. incredulous
    not disposed or willing to believe; unbelieving
    Her face split into an incredulous smile. “Where’d you learn to talk like that? And how’d you know he’d say yes?”
  15. dub
    give a nickname to
    “Black Sunday,” they’d dubbed it. While Howe and I had huddled in the barn, the storm had dumped three hundred thousand tons of topsoil across seven states. An Associated Press reporter had called our area “the dust bowl” and the term stuck.
Created on Sat Mar 07 20:10:56 EST 2026 (updated Tue Apr 21 14:10:14 EDT 2026)

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